Raleigh Relocation Information Center - Moving To the Triangle?

Energy Star Homes Make a Big Difference

ENERGY STAR Movement Continues to Grow in Durham NC

ENERGY STAR qualified homes built in Durham NC in 2009 are the equivalent of:

• Eliminating emissions from 285 vehicles
• Saving 1,722,084 lbs of coal
• Planting 471 acres of trees
• Saving the environment 3,377,353 pounds of CO₂

Looking for a home that makes a difference?  Consider an ENERGY STAR home.  An ENERGY STAR labeled home has been verified and checked, not just by the home builder, but by a licensed third party organization like Southern Energy Management.

1955 ENERGY STAR qualified homes have been built in Durham NC to date.

581 ENERGY STAR qualified homes were built in Durham NC in 2009.

The ENERGY STAR program continues to grow.

What is an ENERGY STAR home, and how does it save money and resources?

An ENERGY STAR home is independently certified by a third party inspection agency. The process starts with the blueprints. A complete energy analysis of the planned home is determined, and all necessary steps to increase energy efficiency are then incorporated. The home is inspected several times during the building process to ensure all work is to the highest standards.

What features are in an ENERGY STAR home in the Raleigh, NC area?

Superior Insulation Installation - Must be installed and rated at ENERGY STAR standards.

High Performance Windows - ENERGY STAR rated windows with a low-E coating.

Tighter Construction/Tighter Ducts - Advanced techniques are used to seal every part of the home, which also reduces noise, moisture, pollen, and dust.

Efficient Heating and Cooling - HVAC systems must be ENERGY STAR rated, and higher than normal performance systems may be required.

Complete Air Barrier - Tested using a field-verified blower test.

Interested in finding out more about other green building features and ideas?

Some popular green home building features and questions include:

• Energy Wise - guaranteed energy savings with spray foam insulation system, save 50-70% on heating and cooling versus standard building practices. 
• ENERGY STAR
• Passive Solar

• Solar hot water
• Tankless hot water
• Solar photovoltaic power
• Geothermal heating and cooling

Raleigh Relocation Information

How To Lower Home Energy Usage

Reduce Your HERS Score in Your New Home

Any home's energy usage can be "rated" by a certified third party Home Energy Rater.  Whether you're buying new or buying an older home in a great location, a HERS score will help you understand how much energy your new home requires. 

What's a Good HERS Score?

A home build to standard construction methods has a HERS score of 100.

An ENERGY STAR home uses 15% less energy, and has a HERS score rating of 85 or lower.

What are some good ways to reduce home energy usage?

Here are some great ways to incorporate energy savings in to your new home.

HVAC Systems

1.   Move ducts inside conditioned space.

This isn't always possible without adding more conditioned space to your home, but if conditioned air leaks out of your ducts (and it will), you don't want it disappearing! 

Moving ducts inside conditioned space can reduce your home energy rating by up to 5 points.

2.  Add a high efficiency furnace.

Moving from an 80% efficiency furnace to a 92% efficiency furnace can reduce your home energy rating by up to 6 points.   However, moving from a 13 seer air conditioner to a 14 seer air conditioner will only reduce your rating by 1 point.

3.  Add a radiant barrier in the attic.

Adding a radiant barrier like Techshield can reduce your attic temperature by up to 30 degrees in the summer.  This will reduce your home energy rating by a couple of points (depending on the total amount of attic/roof space), and could cost as little as $500 or so. 

Conditioned Crawl Space

Converting a standard crawl space to a conditioned crawl space will reduce your home energy rating by about 3 points.   Not only that, indoor air will be healthier, and floors will work better - seasonal temperature changes can cause gapping and buckling, particularly with hardwood flooring.  The crawl space can be one of the most common places for mold to grow.

Water Heating

1.  Solar Hot Water

Adding a solar hot water heater can reduce your home energy score by up to 10 points - this is one of the most significant places to save energy. 

2.  Tankless Hot Water Heater

A tankless hot water heater can reduce your home energy rating by up to 6 points.  Besides heating and cooling your home, providing hot water is one of the main places energy is needed for.

Interior Lighting

A home energy rater will count up to 90% of your fixtures towards the total home energy score.  Replacing all those bulbs with efficient bulbs can get you up to 4 points.

You may also be interested in these popular green building topics:

Green Home Building in the Triangle

What is a Green Home?              

What Is Geothermal?  Geothermal News and Information

Passive Solar Homes and Ideas 

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Home Builders NC

What is a HERS Rating?

HERS = Home Energy Rating Score

Any home can be "rated" by a certified third party Home Energy Rater.  Whether you're buying new or buying an older home in a great location, a HERS score will help you understand how much energy your new home requires.

The home energy rater will provide an analysis of the home, including review of floor plans, onsite inspections, and tests such as a blower door test (to test the leakiness of the house) and a duct test (to test the leakiness of the ducts).

A complex software program analyzes all the data, and provides a HERS Index score for the home. 

What does HERS point mean?

Each 1 point reduction implies a 1% energy savings versus standard construction.  A home with a HERS Index score of 150 will most likely require 50% more energy than a home built to today's standards.

A home with a HERS Index score of 75 will require 25% less energy than a home built to today's standards.

What are common HERS scores to see?

Standard New Construction = 100

A new home built to standard construction guidelines generally has a HERS (Home Energy Rating Score) of 100. 

ENERGY STAR Construction = 85

A new home built to ENERGY STAR guidelines generally has a HERS (Home Energy Rating Score) of 85 or below.

Yearly energy costs are planned to be 15% lower than in a home built to standard construction.

20 Year Old Home = 120 to 150

In general, older homes have higher energy requirements.  This can vary greatly depending on the home and any improvements made, so it is a very good idea to have an older home rated before purchase.

A score of 150 means that yearly energy costs will be 50% higher than in a home built to today's standard construction.

70 Year Old Home = 250???

Very old homes have the lowest energy efficiency.  But energy requirements will vary significantly depending on the improvements made to the home.

A score of 200 means that yearly energy costs will be 100% higher than in a home built to today's standard construction.

What Should I Consider Before Buying My New Home?

It's wise to consider not just the price tag of the home, but also the price tag of the monthly energy costs (and the carbon footprint of those energy costs). 

Coming Soon - providing more information about Energy Efficiency in your new home:

- What Improvements Can Reduce Your HERS Score in Your New Home?

- How Close Has an NC Home Come to a "Zero" Energy Score?

Find out more about new homes in Raleigh NC:

Green Homes, Tips, and Ideas  

5 Easy Steps to Buying a Lot or Land in the Raleigh Area

Other Available Land and Lots in Communities

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Raleigh NC New Homes

ENERGY STAR Just Makes Sense

New Raleigh Area Homes will Save Money, Environment

Stanton Homes is proud to announce a 100% commitment to building new homes that save money, have higher air quality, and reduce dependence on natural resources.  Stanton Homes has been earning national recognition for green and energy saving new home features for years.

Now, as a 100% ENERGY STAR builder, they are working harder than ever to pass those values on to new homebuyers.

"If Americans continue to focus on doing the right thing, ENERGY STAR homes will become standard in the next decade," said Stan Williams, CEO of Stanton Homes.  "With Stanton Homes, that standard starts now."

To earn prestigious ENERGY STAR qualification, a new home must meet strict guidelines for energy efficiency set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 

These homes are at least 15% more energy efficient than homes built to the 2004 International Residential Code (IRC).  ENERGY STAR homes must go through a rigorous third party inspection process, which includes review of plans, framing inspection, insulation inspection, and even a special "blower test" to check air tightness of the home.  These inspections are in addition to and much more rigorous than standard building inspections. 

"Every homebuyer should be demanding ENERGY STAR," said Williams.  "These homes save up to 15% in monthly energy costs. On top of that, the homes qualify for a 5% monthly discount from Progress Energy or Duke Energy.  An average ENERGY STAR home may cost $15 more per month, but the average utility savings is $40 per month!"

An ENERGY STAR home has:

Advanced air sealing

Tight ducts

Advanced windows

Extra efficient HVAC equipment

Efficient insulation installation

Complete air barrier 

All these aspects are field verified by third party agencies like award winning Southern Energy Management. 

If a Stanton Homes homebuyer decides they do not want ENERGY STAR in a new home they are custom building, then they will have the ability to opt out of this feature. But all Stanton Home homebuyers will be educated as to the benefits before they make that choice.  Starting July 1, 2009, all speculative homes by Stanton Homes will be built and certified as ENERGY STAR homes. 

Stanton Homes also encourages energy-conscious homebuyers to consider an EnergyWise home, which provides a guaranteed 50-70% savings on monthly heating and cooling costs, through use of a specially engineered HVAC system, Bayseal foam insulation system, and other initiatives.  The EnergyWise system is available through Stanton Homes and Healthy Home Insulation. 

You may also be interested in:

Green Home Building in the Triangle

What is a Green Home?

What Is Geothermal?  Geothermal News and Information

Passive Solar Homes and Ideas

Energy Star Homes Raleigh NC

ENERGY STAR Homes Continue to Increase in Raleigh

Buying a Home Without ENERGY STAR May Make Future Resale Tougher

ENERGY STAR continues to quietly transform the way new homes are built. 

Percentage of ENERGY STAR Homes Increasing

The number of homes built to exacting ENERGY STAR standards in the Raleigh area INCREASED in 2008 (versus 2007), by 66%!

Even more significantly - overall construction decreased in 2008.  The number of permits issued in Wake County Jan-July 2008 was down 24%.  And yet the number of fully certified ENERGY STAR homes came close to doubling!

Here's the trend in ENERGY STAR homes over the past five years:

Only 42 homes were ENERGY STAR certified in Raleigh in 2004.  In 2008, a total of 1233 new homes were built to standards that exceed the building code by at least 15%, lowering utility costs and helping protect the environment.  

That's a 29 times increase in just 5 short years!

The big question - if you choose to purchase a home today that is NOT ENERGY STAR certified, will your home have a tougher time selling in 5 years? 

Consider:

Over 90% of consumers who have purchased ENERGY STAR say they'll do so again, one of the highest satisfaction ratings.

Local Raleigh area utility companies are offering incentives for builders and homebuyers of ENERGY STAR homes, in order to reduce future dependence on power supplies.

Homebuyers are more and more often considering both the environment and future energy costs when purchasing a home, and an ENERGY STAR home is a "greener" home.

What Does ENERGY STAR Mean?

- Air Sealing

- Tighter Ducts

- Advanced Windows

- Efficient Heating and Cooling Equipment

- Field Verified

- Correctly Installed Insulation

- Complete Air Barrier

- "Right Sized" HVAC Systems

- 5% Progress Energy/Duke Energy Monthly Discounts

- 15-20% Reduced Heating and Cooling Costs

You may also be interested in:

Green Home Building in the Triangle

What is a Green Home?

What Is Geothermal?  Geothermal News and Information

Passive Solar Homes and Ideas

An Energy Star home does more than just save homeowners money every month.  It also takes a big step towards saving the planet.  

Southern Energy Management has shared some facts about the 1,100 Energy Star Homes they certified in 2007.

These 1,100 homes are giving environmental and economic benefits equal to:

• Saving 431,616 lbs of coal

• Planting 112 acres of trees

• Saving homeowners $502,428 on their utility bills

Energy Star homes are certified by highly qualified third party agencies, who put the home, floor plan, and interior and exterior components through a series of tests to determine energy efficiency - and make sure that Energy Star builders obtain and maintain much higher levels of energy efficiency than building codes require.

Southern Energy Management has earned the prestigious Energy Star "Partner of the Year" Award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency - a great sign that North Carolina and Southern Energy Management are taking good steps to protect the environment - and builders are opting to build tight, energy efficient homes using this program.

Southern Energy Management is just one of the third party verification firms working in North Carolina, so the total Energy Star home savings are actually much higher - plus there are benefits from all the homes built in 2006, 2005, etc....

In general, an Energy Star home costs 1-3% more to build than a standard home, depending on what standards the builder normally uses.  But the benefits are huge - here's an overview.

Why are Energy Star Homes better?

 Reduced Utility Bills - Save 15% or more on your monthly

utility bills, thanks to the superior energy efficient construction of your Energy Star home. Progress Energy and Duke Power reward Energy Star homeowners with an additional 5% discount off all of your electric bills!

 Low Maintenance - Enjoy peace of mind by owning a low maintenance home. Energy Star homes are built with the advantages of energy efficient windows, which reduce sun damage to furniture and finishes and high quality heating and cooling equipment, which last longer and perform better than standard equipment. Also the tight construction prevents costly home moisture damage.

 Higher Resale Value - Energy Star homes are likely to have a higher resale value regardless of how long you own your home. A typical Energy Star home reduces utility bills over $420 a year. A recent EPA study revealed that these savings can add $8,400 to the market value of an Energy Star home.

 Healthier Indoor Air - Your Energy Star home is built to reduce indoor air pollutants that contribute to asthma and allergies. Tight construction details block pollen, mold, dust, carbon monoxide, moisture and radon from entering your Energy Star home. Proper ventilation provides fresh air and also protects against the buildup of unhealthy air.

 Help Protect the Environment - Have the great feeling of knowing that you have an important impact on helping the environment. American home energy usage contributes significantly to air pollution, including 20% of all carbon dioxide emissions. Become part of America's energy independence and relieve the stress to our planet in your Energy Star home.

 Comfortable and Quieter Homes - Energy Star homes with additional insulation and high performance windows are blanketed in comfort making temperatures warmer in winter and cooler in summer. Tightly constructed Energy Star homes will not experience annoying drafts and airborne dust. Better-insulated walls, sealed ducts and properly sized efficient mechanical systems deliver quiet high performance year round.

 Third party verification - All Energy Star homes are inspected and tested by Southern Energy Management through every major step in the construction process. You can be certain that your home meets all of the Energy Star requirements and that you have an objective party looking after your quality constructed home.

You may also be interested in these popular green building topics:

 Green Home Building in the Triangle

What is a Green Home?              

What Is Geothermal?  Geothermal News and Information

Passive Solar Homes and Ideas

Raleigh Relocation Package - All About the Raleigh Area!

Stanton Homes announces ENERGY STAR partnership

  Raleigh Custom Home Builder has committed to offering ENERGY STAR qualified new custom homes  

Holly Springs, NC - Stanton Homes is pleased to announce the addition of ENERGY STAR certified homes to the selection of new custom homes offered in the Raleigh/Triangle area. 

"We're proud of the outstanding value in the homes we're building in the Raleigh area," said Stan Williams, CEO of Stanton Homes.  "To further verify our commitment to saving energy and lifetime costs for homebuyers, we're excited to now offer ENERGY STAR qualification in select homes throughout the Triangle."

ENERGY STAR homes must be certified throughout the building process by a third party, government-approved inspector.

"Stanton Homes has always made a point of building custom homes that exceed construction standards" said Williams.  "A home with ENERGY STAR certification gives a government stamp of approval to many of the processes we already have in place." 

ENERGY STAR homes contain:

•°         Efficient HVAC heating and cooling systems

•°         Tight construction and ducts that reduce drafts, moisture, dust, pollen and noise - as well as energy bills.

•°         High performance windows that help keep heat in during winter and out during summer

•°         Insulation that is installed meticulously, and that requires a higher rating in some areas

Every home offered by Stanton Homes is framed according to ENERGY STAR exacting specifications, with high standard techniques that reduce air loss and increase tightness of the home.   Windows in each home have advanced coatings and construction to reduce UV rays.

An ENERGY STAR home uses 17-20% less energy than a home built to standard specifications.  Not only that, any home in North Carolina served by Progress Energy will receive a 5% discount on total monthly electric bills every month.  

ENERGY STAR homes have an extremely positive reputation, leading to higher resale value.  "Because ENERGY STAR homes are certified through a local Raleigh third-party inspector, home buyers can be confident that they'll be living in an outstanding home built for the future," said Williams.  "We're happy to offer the choice of an ENERGY STAR certified custom home to homebuyers in the Raleigh/Triangle area." 

What Goes Into a Raleigh Energy Star Home?

Here's all the details of what makes a Raleigh ENERGY STAR home stand out - and all the benefits that a Raleigh ENERGY STAR home can provide for you.

ENERGY STAR Homes in Raleigh - What is an ENERGY STAR home, and how does it save money and resources? 

You may also be interested in these popular green building topics:

Green Home Building in the Triangle

What is a Green Home?              

What Is Geothermal?  Geothermal News and Information

Passive Solar Homes and Ideas

What is an ENERGY STAR home, and how does it save money and resources?

A Raleigh/Triangle home that has earned prestigious ENERGY STAR certification is significantly more energy-efficient than a standard home. The stamp is a guarantee that the home meets higher government-regulated standards regarding specific resource saving processes and products.

Details that translate into savings within an ENERGY STAR home include:

Inside the Walls - Insulation

All insulation must be rated and installed at ENERGY STAR standards.  This results in balanced temperatures that require less energy to heat and cool your home.

Looking Outward - Windows

High-performance windows are required in an ENERGY STAR home.  These specially coated windows deflect more UV rays, helping keep heat outside during the summer and inside in the winter.

Detailed Construction and Sealed Ducts

Advanced techniques are used to seal every part of the home, from heating and cooling ducts to every portion of the exterior walls, floor, and roof.   This does more than reduce energy costs - it also adds up to less moisture, dust, pollen, and noise. 

Heating and Cooling Equipment

Heating and cooling systems must be specially rated to earn ENERGY STAR certification.  Energy efficiency is only the beginning - most have longer warranties as well. 

Independent Testing

An ENERGY STAR qualified home must be inspected and tested by an independent, ENERGY STAR certified third party inspector throughout the building process.

The ENERGY STAR home payoff:

Lower Energy Costs

Raleigh ENERGY STAR homes are designed to be at least 15% more efficient than a home built to the national Model Energy Code.   This means lower energy bills, every month.

Higher Resale Value

ENERGY STAR homes are certified for life.  Resale values are strong.

Discounted Energy Costs

Progress Energy of the Carolinas offers a 5% discount for life in addition to all the other energy savings in an ENERGY STAR home.   Some Raleigh home builders will make sure Progress Energy is aware your home is an ENERGY STAR home before you even move in, jump-starting your two-fold energy savings.

Home Loan Incentives

According to Energy Star, there are a variety of home loan incentive programs available for the purchase of a certified Energy Star home.  FHA Energy Efficient Mortgages allow lenders to add the cost of energy efficient improvements to an already approved mortgage with no additional downpayment required.  Fannie Mae guidelines allow the projected energy cost savings to be added to the income of the buyer.   Go to Energy Star Lending for the latest information. 

Environmental Protection

Homes use an estimated 17-20% of the nation's energy.  By reducing energy requirements, Raleigh builders of ENERGY STAR homes are also helping to reduce smog, global warming, acid rain, and greenhouse emissions.  At present rates, ENERGY STAR homes are expected to reduce annual carbon emissions by about 4 million metric tons by 2010. 

The Bottom Line

A Raleigh ENERGY STAR home costs 1-3% more than a standard home.  But the increase in comfort, benefits to the environment, reduced energy costs, and home loan incentives are helping homebuyers across the nation make the decision to go ENERGY STAR. 

With extra discounts from Progress Energy in the Raleigh/Triangle area, the benefits are even better in North Carolina. 

You may also be interested in:

Green Home Building in the Triangle

What is a Green Home?

What Is Geothermal?  Geothermal News and Information

Passive Solar Homes and Ideas